FA Cup sponsorship struggle

The football Association are struggling to attract a new sponsor for the FA Cup to replace current sponsors E. ON.

According to Marketing Magazine, the FA has yet to find a title sponsor for the FA Cup, one of the UK's most high-profile sponsorship properties, despite the start of the 2012 competition being just months away.

E.ON who have sponsored the competition for the last four years will not be renewing at the end of this season, a deal which is thought to be worth around £8m a year.

It is believed the FA has been on the hunt for a replacement sponsor since summer 2010 and is said to have handed over its hunt for a commercial sponsor to sports marketing agency IMG.

The FA is expected to issue "competition rules" to the estimated 750 clubs competing in the cup in the next few weeks. The rules include details of the title sponsors' demands at football grounds, such as branding on perimeter boards.

According to one sports agency, last week the FA sent emails to agencies that asked if their clients would be interested in sponsoring the competition. Previous sponsors include Littlewoods and AXA Insurance.

An FA spokesman said: "We have been in discussions with a number of parties since last summer regarding sponsorship opportunities at Wembley and those talks are ongoing."